A Spoonie can refer to any individual who suffers from a chronic illness. Often times these illnesses are invisible and therefore extremely hard to understand. The spoon theory is an idea that chronically ill people have limited energy to perform everyday tasks, and the “spoon” is used as a representation of the unit of energy. Every activity through the day, however big or small, drains your energy supply…..getting out of bed, changing clothes, walking, working, grocery shopping, making doctor’s appointments, hanging out with friends, making a meal, etc. The list goes on and on but every single item on that list has a spoon value and as you complete the item, you lose those spoons. When your spoon reserve gets low, you feel depleted and need to be done for the day. If you run out of spoons but push yourself to keep going, you risk losing spoons for the following days and lose productivity for other activities you have coming up. The spoon theory, coined by Christine Miserandino, is something that all chronically ill people can relate to and use in their every day conversation.
I am thrilled to start this new project, Spoonie Spotlight, on my blog where I feature different Spoonies across the world and ask them thought-provoking questions about their health journey. Every single Spoonie featured has their own unique story and perception on chronic illness. I hope reading all these remarkable journeys will provide you with hope, faith, and the motivation to keep on going. And for the able-bodied visitors on my blog, I hope this helps you understand a little bit what our lives look being chronically ill. I’m so excited for this and I hope you are too!
THE UNDIAGNOSED 